Draft device for increasing the loading on tractor wheels



April l5, 1952 .1.1.. O'NEILL DRAFT DEVICE FOR INCREASING THE LOADING ON TRACTOR WHEELS Y Filed Feb. 17, 1949 4 Sheets-Sheet l l l /l/l 2.x

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April 15, 1952 J. L. oNElLl. 2,592,592

DRAFT DEVICE FOR INCREASING THE LOADING oN TRAcToR WHEELS Filed Feb. 17, 1949 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR.

TB/mes Nef/ April 15, 1952 NEILL 2,592,592

J. L. O' DRAFT DEVICE FOR INCREASING THE LOADING ON TRACTOR WHEELS Filed Feb. 17, 1949 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 E I E- INVENToR.

f/ames /Ye/N.

BY v

Patented Apr. 15, 1952 usernames Fon INCREASING THE. LQ QN .TRAGtQSWIelLSQ 'Frattureeteruseem .fer-.mies :fer-fthe autres of pulling plows-or,h arrows orevariousn-lbther agricultural; immenenti; 1";.:t 101S-,` Sometimes because @the ground is hard l@infor `other reasons, the ground offers `such resistance. that the. tractonr cannot` pull the tools Yand4 .the tractor ,.wheels:

sind,l orslip. Tractors or` autos L are `also used mais wuhrutiskiedingwithout the use ef these extralweights.

ariotherobiect; 01? this @retest-.1s @Sluit f9.1? increasegthe .loadfor, traetion` onione -or the. other of. the: traewr f WheelsV the emi :thereoff Figure 1 Visa.` topman :View- Qf .1r-y attecihmfn t@ arrester or otherfrwer unit-1 Figure 2.- is. as section 0.11. the line; 2r. 2a: off: Figure l;

Figure Sis `anenlarged.Seiinntheline 3x, 3a: of Figure 1.

FigureA iSfan enlargeddetailyseetional View Qtr-the 4support forthepulley shownin Figures V1 and 2.

ligures` shows a; vertical sectionon the line Em, 5o: ofI Figure 3. i

Figure 6A is asideelevation of` a mod cation ofthe meehanismlshown in Figure 3.

Figure? isa section; of the parts shown in Fliguresand 8,. the. Sett-tin:Y @insteken @r1 the line. 1r. 1ra-.0f Figure@ Igure 8 iis aL topplan viewof f theparts shown inFigures and?.y

InV the drawings, like reference numerals indicate like parts.

In the drawings reference numeral I is the draw bar. to` whichr thetools, such as a, plow, etc.

are attached. This draw bar rests. andy swings on trabar@ whiclis perforated Withholes es indi.- :serieelL at. 3 3. Pins ean he put through these holes on eitherside of the drawl bar for. thevpurpose. oflimitne the swine -Of thedraw par. This draw. bar. at its.,fowardy end is.Y pivoter! the bolt 4H with whicl'it has ai'slidin'g engagement on.v 4the cross4 bar 6 r as' indicatedl by 'the 'slot in Figure `1.- 'Thaferwerd end f the bar restson the` stationary cross bar @and passes underA a stationary cross bar. I and thefrearend of the cross bar rests upon the semifeircular bar 2.as. above explained. Atfeach end ofthevcross bar 6 isplaeed anuprig'ht having a rearward extension 9 which parts are weldedtogether and form. a bracket IQ. See also Figurez. At `the right hand end as shown in Figurer, each of these brackets is bolted. tothehousing III., by the bolts I 2, I2. Thishousing contains the gear.,- ing on the. rear axle of a tractor.

Welded toV the. forward Aportion of eaohV rearward extension of.. thefbraelrtV I Il is .arect'angul- I4," I`4 These lugs carry` a` bolt I5` orifwhiehare mounted to swing two arms; I6, I6 between which is carriedv a pulley Il around which pulley runs ac able I8.

The lower ends Ia, lia of the` arms I6, I6 strike the plate, I3, limiting the upward movement'of the pulley I 1. A sirlanfeombination of. brackets I u, bolts I2, I2, pulley I'Iland supports therefor and cable I8. is provided on each side. of.this assembly, whichisf attached to` the tractor. and forms a, part. of my. invention.

On top of the draw bar I as shown in Figures 1 and 2 of the drawing is placeda bar 2p, which bar. isshorter than the drawbar. I and isllvotal-y lyconnected to the draw bar bythe bolt. 2l. f`

Therearward, end or.' the draw. bar las `shown in Figure 7-1` dan swing. with rfereneeto. thefsetnif circular Vbar 2, but the rearward. end or the. bar 20 cannot swing. It is r'mly.. held to the .cross bar'l as follows: Y On the cross bar. 1. is welded a bracket. 22 havingan open slot 23 therein in which engages the stud 2 4. The threaded end of this studV engages with a nut 25 that is .Welded to a shortbracket ZB-which in turn is Welded to. the baryzfshown inFigureZ. On thestud; 2Q is a'eollar 21 which loosely'engages thefffar side. offthef bracket; 22so that' the stud 24 is permitted a smauenuwise movement which ist` necessary to permit. thebolt 2J. toswingwhen therearwardendl of the draw bar-I swings as shownin Figure 1..

The slot 23 in thebracket 22. is made` somewhatlonger. than the slot5 in the draw bar I so that. the` 'stud 2 4fcannot getlout of'eugag ent with` mesme 2.a.'

When the draw bar I swings, it swings on the pivot orA center .4. 'I Yhe drawbar. I ea'rries. the

bolt 2l with it and swings slightly the forward end of the bar 20 as shown in Figure 1. The rearward end of the bar 20 is to some extent held against swinging by the nut 25 and by the ends of the cables I8, IS which are fastened to the ring 30, which ring is welded to the rearward end of the bar 20. The rearward end of the bar 20 swings on a center that is located either in the nut 25 or the ring 3U or a center somewhere between the two. The draw bar I when moved to the right of left in Figure 1, according to the tool being drawn, does not change the ad- `iustment of the bar 20 and its cables I8 to any extent. When the tractor wheels move ythe tractor forward the draw bar is heldback by the load. The draw bar then pulls on the cables and pulls the free end of the upper spring down.

By turning the stud 24, the nut 25 is drawn either to the right or left, increasing the tension on one of the cables It and decreasing .the tension on the other cable I8. By increasing the tension on the right cable the pull of the implement is increased on the right cable and increases the traction of the right rear tractor wheel.

As the cable'l extends around the pulley I1 and extends upwardly, it is engaged with the left hand end of the blade spring 3I so that a move- .ment of the ring 3l] in Figure 2 to the right will pull the free end of this right hand spring 3l 0i Fig. 1 down and a movement of the ring 3Q to thc left in Figure 2 will allow the free end of said spring 3! to move up. v

The right hand end of this spring 3l as seen in Figs. 2 and 3 is supported as follows: Bolted to one side of the housing l I is an upright strap. 32

4and bolted to the other side' of the housing is an .upright twisted strap 35. To the ends of these juprights vis welded a channel 54, which channel is closedat the left hand end as shown atv 35 in In the channel 34 is a pivot St on which is mounted a blade spring 31. This blade ,spring at a point near the left hand end rests on lthe closed end Sii-- of the channel 34, which serves as a fulcrum or support for the left hand end of the spring 31. Y

Welded tothe spring 3i, as shown in Figure 5, are two downwardly extending lugs 35a and SI1). Welded to the top of the spring 31 is the block 31h that extends upwardly between the lugs 3Ia and Sib. A pin 31e passes through the lugs @Ia and 3Ib .and the block 31h connecting them together and forming a pivot connection between the spring 3| and the spring 31. About midway of the length of the spring 31 is welded one leaf 4D of `a hinge 31a, the other leai 42a of the hinge beingl welded tothe two upright bars Sil and 39 'which bars with the leaf spring form a sort of a channel. The bars 38 and 39 extend beyond the hinge 31a forming the lugs 38a and 39a. These bars are connected at the right hand end by the bolt 4I. The bars are spaced apart by the sleeve 43, which is carried on the bolt 4I. The right hand end of the spring. 3l is wrapped around this sleeve 43 and is pivoted on the sleeve. As is shown in Figure 3 when the cable I8 is tightened or drawn down, the left hand end of the spring 3| is drawn'down. The spring 3i rocks on the pivot pin 31e and raises the right hand end of the spring, the pin 4I and the right hand end of the two bars 35 and 3S. The bars 38 and 39 will swing on the hinge 31a and depress the extended lugs 33a and 39a, so that they give a downward thrust on the so-called spring 31 which spring is very stii.

' When tension is applied tov one of the cables pressed down on the so-called spring 31, which spring 31 is very sti.

It will be remembered that the assembly shown in Figure 3 appearson both sides of the tractor as shown in Figure 1. When the bar 20 is held centrally between the wheels or between the two assemblies, then the springs r3|,.3I will be drawn down equally and if the bolt 24 is turned so as to move the nut 25 and the bar 2B to one side or the other, then the springs 3l, 3l will be drawn down unequally.

It will be understood that the lugs 38a and 39a vare preferably located over the axle on which are mounted the rear wheels of the tractor (not shown) so that it would cause a downward thrust on those wheels.

, Threaded into the spring 31, near the end thereof, is a stud 45 having a disc 46 on the end thereof. This disc is raised or lowered by turning the disc or stud 45 and it acts as an adjustable stop for the end of the spring 3|.

It sometimes happens that it is necessary to shift the draw bar to the right or the left in the kordinary use of the tractor according to the tools that it draws or according to the slant of the ground over which it is travelling. It is necessary to hold the draw bar in its adjusted angular position by putting a pin on each side of it which `pins engage the holes 3, 3 ip the semi-circular bar 2 as above described, When pulling on a side vhill it is desirable to place more weight on the upper wheel. For this purpose I provide a chain 41 which is fastened atits lower end to the hook .4S from the'draw bar 'and its upper end to either the hook 4% or 5D, depending on which way the ,draw bar is swung.

The operation of my device is as follows: As-

suming that a farm tool is attached to the draw 4bar I at the bottom of Figure v1 and at the right in Figure 2 and the tractor with-the assembly Vshown in Figures 1 and 2 is moved in the direction of the arrow in each iigure, the draw bar is moved to the right in Figure 2 and down in Figure lrto the position shown in dotted lines.

relative to the assembly, but not to the limit of the length of the slot 5 shown in Figure 1.

This pulls the cables I8 down in Figure l and to the right in Figure 2 and puts tension on them and fiexes the spring 3l as shown in Figure 2. This puts a downward thrust on the springs 31, as above described, which are located over the shaft of the traction wheels and increases the traction vof the traction wheels.

In Figures 6, 1 and 8 I have shown a modified or substitute form of the details of the unit shown in Figure 3.

As'shown in Figures 6 and '1, a cable I8 is attached to a ring EI, which Yis connected to the spring 62, which spring is pivoted on the pin 63 which pin is supported between the upright plates Se and B5. These plates 64 and 65 are pivoted on Vthe pin 56 and they carry between them the pin 51 which rests on the stiii spring 88, which spring is pivot-ed on the pin E9. The pin 65 is supported by the bearing block 5ta welded to thetop of the spring 58. The plates 54 and 65 each have a curved slot S9 cut therein which weakens each of the plates so that the upper part of the plates 64 and 65 can spring on the lower part of the plate, the lower part of 'the plate being held down by the pin 66 and the upper part of the plates being raised slightly bythe pin 63 when the cable I8 is pulled down. As the pin 63 and the upper portions of slotted plates 64 and 65 are raised, the

pin 61 bears down on the stiff spring 68 and this in turn bears down on the channel 14, 15. This is welded to the two bracke-ts 12 and I3 which correspond to the channel 34 and brackets 32 and 33 of Figure 2 and would be bolted in any suitable manner to the stationary housings over the rear wheels of the tractor.

I claim:l

1. In a tractor having tractor wheels, bearings therefor, an axle mounting said wheels and bearings and a lhousing for said axle, said tractor Wheels suppo-rting the load, and apparatus for increasing or decreasing the load on the tractor wheels comprising a bracket mounted forward of and a bracket mounted rearward of the bearing of each of the tractor wheels, said brackets being placed on said housing and extending thereabove, parallel plates supported on said brackets, a pivot mounted on said parallel plates and extending therebetween and o-n one side of said bearings, a lower spring pivotally mounted on said pivot and extending between said plates over the firstnamed bracket and being supported on said firstnamed bracket, a second pair of parallel plates mounted on said lower spring, an upper spring Ibetween said second pair of plates and extending across the wheel bearing and over the firstnamed bracket, a second pivot between said second pair of plates over the wheel bearing, said upper spring being connected to said second pair of parallel plates by said second pivot, the forward end of said second pair of plates being pivotally connected to said first-named lower spring and having lugs thereon that extend forwardly beyond and over said last-mentioned pivotal connection and bear on the first-named lower spring.

2. In a tractor having tractor wheels, bearings therefor, an axle mounting said wheels and bearings and a housing for said axle, said tractor wheels supporting the load, and apparatus for increasing or decreasing the load on the tractor wheels comprising a bracket mounted forward of and a bracket mounted rearward of the bearing of each of the tractor wheels, said brackets being placed on said housing and extending thereabove, parallel plates supported on said brackets, a pivot mounted on said parallel plates and extending therebetween and on one side of said bearings, a lower spring pivotally mounted on said pivot and extending between said plates over the first-named bracket and being supported on said first-named bracket, a second pair of parallel plates mounted on said lower spring, an upper spring between said second pair of plates and extending across the wheel bearing and over the first-named bracket, a second pivot between said second pair of plates over the wheel bearing, said upper spring being connected at one end 'to said second pair of parallel plates by said second pivot, the forward end of said second pair of plates being pivotally connected to said rst-named lower spring and having lugs thereon that extend forwardly beyond and over said last-named pivotal connection and bear on the first-named lower spring, a cable attached to the extreme free end of said upper spring, a pulley secured to said housing below the end of the upper spring, around which pulley the cable extends, a drawbar on said tractor, a short bar pivotally connected at the forward end thereof to the drawbar. said cables being attached to the rear end of said second-named bar and being pulled rearwardly thereby on the forward movement of the tractor wheels.

3. In a tractor having tractor wheels and the assembly of a framework, housing and power mechanism and an axle connecting the tractor wheels to the said assembly, in combination, a drawbar to which a load is attached, means pivotally securing the drawbar to said assembly, means for increasing the loading on the tractor wheels and axle on lthe forward movement of the tractor, said means including a cable drawn rearwardly at one end by the drawbar and the load attached thereto and secured to the rearward portion of said dra-wbar, a blade Spring pivotally mounted on said housing above the axle and extending forward of the axle, the other end of said cable being attached to the forward end of said spring and being adapted to draw the forward end of the spring down, a stop for arresting the downward movement of said spring whereby loading on the axle is increased, means securing said stop to said housing, and a pulley on said housing around which the intermediate part of the cable travels.

JAMES L. ONEILL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,699,397 Klein Jan. 15, 1929 2,347,898 Ferguson May 2, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 148,319 Switzerland 1;- Sept. 16, 1931 584,335 Germany Sept. 18, 1933 

